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By TOM STRONGMAN
John Swander flies his 1932 WACO UECcabin biplane like he drives his 1932Ford coupe: window down, elbow out
in the wind, his hands grasping the wheel-shaped yoke with relaxed confidence.
Swander’s hobbies might lead you tothink he’s stuck in a time warp. In someways he is because his heart and soul aresmack in the middle of what he calls thegolden age of aviation, 1927 to 1941, andthe golden age of hot rodding, 1945 to 1955.
Although Swander is one of the ownersof Volkswerks in Merriam, Kan., his after-hours wrenching is focused almost entire-ly on traditional hot rods that look as ifthey came straight from racing on one ofCalifornia’s dry lakes.
One of his current rides is a 1932 Fordfive-window coupe whose originality is abadge of honor. The paint is faded, a horseblanket covers the seat, one of the win-dows is cracked and the chrome is pitted.Patina has never looked so good.
About six years ago at the L.A. RoadsterShow in Pomona, Calif., Swander met KenSchmidt and Keith Cornell, owners of RollingBones, a New York shop that specializes increating vintage hot rods. He immediatelyconnected with them and their philosophy.The three of them put their heads togetherand decided that the old ’32 hot rod sitting inSwander’s garage was ripe for a project.
He shipped the car to their shop andthey built a new frame, installed period-correct hydraulic front shocks and an orig-inal ’32 Ford front axle. The hood is now
about 1 inch longer than stock,but the paint was weatheredso that it matched the car’sexisting finish.
Swander installed a small-block Chevy engine, dressedwith three two-barrel carbs.The transmission is a five-speed and the rear-end is aHalibrand quick-change.
Swander builds his cars todrive, and he has driven thisone to California three times.It’s like driving a piece of histo-ry, he said. And that’s exactly how he feelsabout flying the biplane that he restored.The Experimental Aircraft Associationnamed it Grand Champion in 2000. He flewit in the National Air Tour in 2003.
As if cars and aircraft aren’t hobbiesenough, Swander smiled when he said heis learning to play the electric guitar. Heplays a replica of a vintage Fender, ofcourse. The time warp lives on.
Distributed by Universal Uclick. *For release the week of March 7, 2011.
Panamera V-6 blends fuel economy, performance
Old cars and old airplanes hold equal appeal for this enthusiast
By TOM STRONGMAN
Porsche’s four-door Panamera wasdesigned to be a “true sports car forfour people,” in the words of David
Pryor, vice president of marketing forPorsche Cars North America, at the 2009press introduction. Slipping a 295-horse-power V-6 under the hood for 2011 has donelittle to diminish that claim.
When the 2010 Panamera first came tomarket, it was available with either a 400-horsepower V-8 or a 500-horsepower tur-bocharged V-8. The turbo blistered thepavement as it romped to 60 mph in fourseconds and a top track
speed of 188 mph.Now comes the V-6 model, and while 300
horsepower would appear to pale in compar-ison, it actually acquits itself very well.Sixty mph comes up in 5.8 seconds, which isnot exactly snail territory, and the top trackspeed is 160 mph. I’d say that’s good enough.
When the Panamera was introduced in2009, some purists scoffed that Porsche didn’tneed a sedan or that the styling wasn’t ele-gant, but the car was a sales success becauseit was not only supremely comfortable as a luxury sedan, but it could also hustle arounda racetrack like a sports car.
Porsche calls the Panamera a gran turis-mo, and touring is its forte. On the high-
way, it is fast andrelaxed. It would beideal for a high-speed, cross-countryjourney because itfeels like a personaljet. The rear bucketseats are as deeplycontoured and as supportive as those in thefront, and rear headroom and legroom aresurprisingly generous.
The back seats fold forward, and the result-ing cargo space can accommodate a bicycle.
The Panamera’s seven-speed transmis-sion is essentially a manual transmissionthat is shifted automatically, or with pad-dles on the steering wheel. Called PDK, forPorsche Doppelkupplungsgetriebe, or dualclutch transmission, this unit shifts gearswith lightning speed, and it seems to havethe right gear for nearly every situation.
Air suspension is standard, but anoptional dynamic chassis control ($5,000)helps eliminate body roll in corners.
The Panamera has a start-stop functionthat shuts off the engine when the car isstopped and restarts it immediately whenthe brake is released. This feature savesfuel and reduces emissions. Porsche saysthis is the first use of such a system withthe PDK transmission.
Fuel economy is rated at 18 mpg in thecity and 27 on the highway. Those are sur-prising figures for a car of this caliber.
The cockpit feels like that of an aircraft.Porsche wanted to avoid using a mouselikeknob that is becoming popular among high-
end cars, so the driver is surrounded by but-tons – on both sides of the center console andon the ceiling. While the number of buttonslooks confusing at first, they are grouped byfunction and are easy to understand.
To save weight, aluminum, magnesiumand boron steel are used for the body. Theunderbody is smooth for more efficientaerodynamics, and a movable spoiler risesup from behind the rear window to createdownforce at high speed.
One particularly impressive option is theBurmeister audio system ($5,690) that has16 speakers and 1,000 watts of power. Thestereo is as awesome as the car is fast.Price
Base price of the V-6 Panamera is $74,400.The test car’s options included metallicpaint, heated seats, heated steering wheel,19-inch Turbo wheels and a Bose surround-sound stereo. The sticker price was $82,190.Warranty
Four years or 50,000 miles.
Tom Strongman has been covering the auto industry for 25 years. He can be reached at [email protected].
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The Specs2011 Porsche Panamera
Engine: 3.6-liter, 300-hp V-6Transmission: Seven-speed PDK
automatic rear-wheelWheelbase: 115 inchesCurb weight: 3,880 lbs.Base price: $74,400As driven: $82,190MPG rating: 18 city, 27 hwy.
A perfect pair: A 1932 Ford and a 1932 WACO biplane.
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The Panamera is comfortable for four people, but hustles like a sports car.
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